OUR REPORTS

Multi-Level Partnerships to Promote Health (Global Public Health, April 2008)

Ethnic populations in eastern Burma are the target of military policies that result in forced labor, destruction of food supplies, and massive forced displacement. Despite international assistance to Burmese refugees along the Thailand-Burma border, traditional
humanitarian models have failed to reach these internally displaced persons (IDPs) within Burma. Nevertheless, through the cultivation of a model (cross border local-global partnerships) 300,000 IDPs in eastern Burma now receive critical health services where, otherwise, there would be none.

These local elements are potentiated by international support for technical assistance, training, resources, and advocacy. International policy and investment should prioritize support of locally-driven health initiatives that utilize local-global partnerships to reach not only IDPs but also other wartorn or traditionally inaccessible populations worldwide.